Espinal’s 1st immigration check-in goes well
Report: Cause of death is ‘blunt force trauma to the head and upper body’
When Edith Espinal went to the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement office in Westerville in February and the agency said it would allow her to live at home – instead of in the local church where she had been staying to avoid deportation – she was feeling confident.
When she entered the same office again on Tuesday, the immigrant mother of three was admittedly nervous.
But she once again emerged from a meeting with immigration officials feeling triumphant. The ICE officer signed off within just a few minutes, saying she came to her check-in as requested and can continue to live in her family’s West Side apartment until her next check-in with officials in October, Espinal said.
“I feel very happy because I can walk outside again,” said Espinal, 43, who was afraid she might be deported or detained, as has happened to other immigrants at check-ins, especially during the Trump administration.
Espinal lived in Columbus Mennonite Church on the city’s North Side for three years, from October 2017 to February, in order to avoid being deported after entering the country illegally from her home country of Mexico years prior.
An order of supervision, which Espinal was granted in February, means that she is not an immediate priority for deportation but must check in periodically with ICE officials. ICE officials were not immediately available for comment on Tuesday.
Once again, Espinal’s supporters came out to be with her. She entered the office with the Rev. Marian Stewart of the First Unitarian Universalist Church of Columbus; Columbus City Council President Shannon Hardin; and Morgan Harper, an advocate and former candidate for Ohio’s Third Congressional District.
About 17 people gathered before Espinal’s 10 a.m. appointment to wish her well and witness her check-in. They
were holding signs saying “Keep Edith home” and “Let Edith stay.” Many wore
shirts with an image of her face on them, and Espinal wore a shirt that marked
her 1,000th day in sanctuary.
Hardin spoke briefly before Espinal entered the office and accompanied her inside.
“We’re naming the injustice that has happened. We’re naming the fact that we don’t need Edith to come back here and check in,” Hardin said. “There is something demoralizing about having to come all the way up here to interrupt her life, to interrupt her ability to get back on her feet.”
Espinal thanked her supporters and said everything that has happened – including her leaving sanctuary – has happened because of them.
Next, Espinal said she hopes to get her work permit – which takes six months – and take classes to further her education.
“My family is a symbol for many immigrant families living like my family,” she said. dking@dispatch.com @Danaeking
MANSFIELD – The newly released autopsy report for Melinda Davis, 33, of Shelby, whose body was found in the trunk of her car March 14, shows she died of blunt force trauma to the head and upper body.
Davis was reported missing Feb. 25 and the autopsy report states that her nude body was found in the trunk of her Volkswagen Jetta after the vehicle was towed from a Columbus apartment complex to a Mansfield garage on March 14.
Davis’ ex-boyfriend, John Henry Mack Jr., 43, of Mansfield, was arrested March 4 on kidnapping charges and later was charged with 17 counts including aggravated murder with a death-penalty specification, kidnapping, and tampering with evidence.
John Henry Mack Jr. pleaded not guilty to all charges
Mack entered a plea of not guilty last month to all 17 counts in Richland County Common Pleas Court.
Davis’ autopsy was performed by the office of Kent E. Harshbarger, Montgomery County coroner.
The autopsy report, obtained Monday by the News Journal, stated that there were multiple blunt force injuries to Davis’ head and neck and evidence that she had been choked and that her body suffered overall bruising and contusions.
The report said Davis’ neck was broken, listing a “cervical neck C7 right vertebral body fracture with surrounding extravascular blood.”
There were multiple contused abrasions across Davis’ body, according to the report, including her head, torso, upper and lower extremities, and legs, and she suffered a brain hemorrhage.
A cloth belt was found around Davis’ left ankle and the left wrist had a ligature mark encircling it. A strong odor of bleach was detected coming from the body when the trunk was opened, according to a document in the autopsy report, signed by Richland County coroner’s investigator Tom Stortz.
Stortz said Monday that “there is nothing in the autopsy that shows (the killer) used an object” in causing the fatal wounds.
“The autopsy revealed that the decedent had died as a result of blunt force trauma to the head and upper body.
Death is ruled a homicide,” the report states.
2 Mansfield attorneys appointed to represent Mack
Mansfield attorneys Robert H. Whitney and Bernard R. Davis have been appointed to represent Mack, who was found indigent, according to court records. A pretrial hearing was set for 3 p.m. June 23.
Mack is facing two counts of aggravated murder including one that meets death penalty criteria; two additional counts of murder; two counts of kidnapping; six counts of tampering with evidence; abduction; grand theft of a motor vehicle; gross abuse of a corpse; domestic violence, and obstructing official business, according to an indictment filed last month with the Richland County Clerk of Courts.
Richland County Sheriff J. Steve Sheldon said on March 15 that Davis’ body had been found in the trunk of her car, which was discovered the night before at an apartment complex on the western edge of Columbus, near Galloway.
On the day she disappeared, Davis was believed to have been headed to Mansfield to meet Mack to collect some items that belonged to her late brother, according to an initial news release from
Shelby police Chief Lance Coombs.
On her way to see Mack, Davis called a friend and said, “If you don’t hear from me, call the police,” according to court documents.
Blood found in search of Mack’s residence
Blood believed to be Davis’ was found in a search of Mack’s Cliffside Drive residence
A warrant for Mack’s arrest on a charge of kidnapping was issued Feb. 26 in connection with Davis’ disappearance.
He was arrested without incident at 6:02 p.m. March 4, near East First and South Adams streets after law enforcement received a tip that he was in Mansfield.
Also arrested at the scene were Mack’s son, Jabyn Mack, 18, of Mansfield, and Jabyn’s wife, Alexandria Mack, 18, of Bellville. They were both charged with obstructing official business after picking Mack up in Columbus and driving him to Mansfield knowing he was wanted by law-enforcement authorities, according to court documents.
John Henry Mack was arraigned on March 5, with bond set at $1 million. lwhitmir@gannett.com 419-521-7223